Amazon.com: After creating one of the breakthrough movies of the American independent cinema, Stranger than Paradise, Jim Jarmusch stayed right in the same minimalist, oddball, black-and-white groove. Down by Law takes place in Louisiana, where two losers (musicians Tom Waits and John Lurie) find themselves stuck in a jail cell together. One day they are joined by a boisterous Italian (Roberto Benigni), and the chemistry changes--suddenly an escape attempt is on the horizon. Conventional drama is not Jarmusch's intention; one of the emotional high points of this movie is the three guys marching around their prison cell shouting, 'I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!' Yet the deadpan style creates its own humorous mood, underscored by melancholy (also underscored by the music of Lurie and the gravel-voiced songs of Waits). This was the first American film for Roberto Benigni, the Italian comedian (Life Is Beautiful), and he lights it up with his effervescent clowning. Jarmusch has said that Down by Law forms a loose trilogy with Stranger than Paradise and the subsequent Mystery Train, a triptych of disaffected, drifting life in the United States. Few filmmakers have ever surveyed ennui so entertainingly. --Robert Horton
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Rating: - Melancholy delight
This won a lot of raves when it came out. As usual, not much happens. But you get a lot of profound, elongated moments when meaningful glances are made that seem to add up to more than they appear. They don't, but it's fun to watch a young Tom Waits. Great soundtrack, as usual. Pretty silly, really. Especially the Italian restaurant in the middle of nowhere. Many extras for buffs only, though the phone interview of Tom Waits is funny.
Rating: - Summertime, and the livin's not easy
This b&w treasure, starring a very young (and ALWAYS fabulous) Tom Waits & Roberto Benigni, features a brief bit at the beginning showcasing the talent of an equally young (playing totally crazed) Ellen Barkin. The action takes place in & around New Orleans and the Bayou, with a fair section set in the Orleans Parish Prison, where, more than ever actually planning an escape, Waits (Zach), Benigni (Bob), and John Lurie (Jack) build a working relationship. Unlikely? Maybe. Dysfunctional? Definitely. Entertaining? Always.
The first half may seem a little slow paced to some; if one is a bit patient, the film is WELL worth it. The music is low-key jazz with Tom Waits singing, and the atmosphere pure poverty-stricken, stifling, Southern summer.
Rating: - Please enter a title for your review
Of all the artists in any medium who seem to get a lot of credit for doing very little Jim Jarmusch takes the cake. This movie seems like something thrown together as a lark by a few buddies after a few beers. I guess advocates of anti-hollywood artyness needed a new posterchild and Jarmusch was in the right place at the right time with the right haircut.
Rating: - Jarmusch at his best
On Stranger than Paradise, one could be forgiven if they felt Jim Jarmusch was being a little pretentious. As minimalist no budget film making, there were lots of those so called artsty shots that cojure up a laundry list of foreign art house directors. But Stranger than Paradise was not only a watershed moment for the American indie film, it also set the stage for Jarmusch as a great indie film director and it was the stepping stool for the great Down by Law, arguably his best work.
Like Stranger than Paradise, Down By Law follows of a trio of losers. While the characters in Stranger than Paradise were living possibly on pipe dreams, Down by Law's trio are losers of the worst kind. Tom Waits plays a down on his luck DJ set up delivering a car that, unbeknownst to him, carries a dead body while John Lurie plays a pimp, also set up to meet a possible new employee. This basic setup allows both characters ... Read More
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- Melancholy delight
- Summertime, and the livin's not easy
- Please enter a title for your review
